You Win Some, You Want to Dump Some

It has been a very busy couple of weeks for us. Finally I have a minute to sit down. Of course, Revolution is on, so I'm blogging during commercials. So far there haven't been any, so I'm doing what I can.

My dad and step mom came to visit. It was nice. They haven't been to our home since we moved here. We hadn't been to there house in about 5-6 years. It was a nice visit. One little snafu. My dad and I got into it about homeschooling and me being stubborn. Well, it takes stubborn to know stubborn is what I always say. Anyway, I'll repeat what I said to him. I don't give a damn what anyone thinks about our decision to home school. It wasn't anyone else's decision but mine and hubby's and we made the right one. We went and had ice cream and to the park. There's this little place across from the park that has a lovely dreamsicle ice cream. I could have eaten my weight in that stuff. We went and ate sushi. And the kids got spoiled at the big box store. So did I. And it was nice. It was good to see them and great to spend some time. It was a much needed break for us.

The kids and I have decided that we do not like our science curriculum. We have been using Apologia: Exploring Creation with Physical Science. I can guarantee you that I won't use anymore of their science curriculum if it's written by the same man that wrote this one. At one point today, I could have stabbed my eyes out with my pencil. Good thing I wear glasses and have a barrier between my eyes and the sharp, pointy end. Do we really need a paragraph explaining that when you have a chemical symbol with two letters, the first letter is capitalized and the second letter isn't? Do we have to repeat through 4 chapters that the chemical formula for water is H2O? The first experiment in chapter 4 is the same as the experiment in chapter 1, except using Epsom salt and not baking soda. I'm all for review, but repeating over and over is something else. And he doesn't know when to stop talking. We just need to hang in there a few more months until co-op is over. Lord, give me strength.

I didn't get much sleep last night. About 3:30, my eyes popped open and they didn't want to close until about 5. Not good. About 5 this afternoon, I couldn't take it anymore. I made it to the couch before I kind of just faded away. Hubby came home and took the boy to dance. I finally rolled off the couch about 6:30 to make dinner. I had something else on the menu, but realized yesterday I didn't have everything I needed. So I made it up. We had meatballs, zucchini and carrot ribbons sauteed in butter and garlic, and sweet potato biscuits. EVERYONE ate the biscuits. They were lovely. I'm going to make more and post the recipe. Hubby told me he doesn't like sweet potatoes (he really doesn't), but he will eat them any way I cook them. He feels the same way about Brussel sprouts.

I've been picking books for the kids. They still get to pick their own, but I pick something outside their comfort zone. The boy has read 2 of my picks and really enjoyed them. He's already asked me to pick another. He also found a new author he likes. The baby has liked my picks as well. She has been on an American Girl kick for a couple of months now. I picked some cute books for her. The big girl isn't real happy, but she's reading her book because she's a good girl. I'm not sure what I'm picking next for her, but it will be way out of her box. That's the way I roll.   

And now I'm rolling off to bed. I am wiped out and Revolution is over.

Have a great day. 

Aaaaahhhhhh...

Sometimes I let anxiety get the best of me. Ok, maybe more than sometimes. Case in point: freaking out about our schooling and our schedule and how in the world the two were going to mesh. Well, actually, except for an impromptu trip to buy dance shoes and run errands, it's meshed very well.

We have had a couple of days that just seemed like we couldn't get any work done at all. It was one road block after another. It was driving me crazy. There was no reason we should be working at 3 in the afternoon. Sometimes, it be's like that, to quote Pink. Really, though, that should not be our norm. I'm going to keep an eye on things and see what else needs to be tweaked.

It doesn't help that the kids are each taking two dance classes. We hadn't even started and I was worried we would have to drop classes already. Science is taking a huge chunk of time for us. Bible study got moved to a different day and we had not one night off during the week. Not one. Panic set in. And it brought a bag, like it was going to stay for awhile. Well, crap.

Guess what? Stuff happens and things change. Sometimes that's good, but sometimes not. Sometimes it's a combination of things. Here's what happened.

I cancelled bible study. We showed up, but nobody else did. I was expecting that. I had gotten messages and texts from the kids that normally showed and others that they weren't going to be able to participate. I gave it a try just to see if anyone was going to make it. Nope. 6:30 came around and we turned off the lights and left. As much as I absolutely loved facilitating that study, it was almost like a weight lifted off my shoulders. I didn't know how we were going to be out 5 nights a week and still function the next day. We don't have to. We have a night off.

Dance! The kids started this week. Everyone is loving their classes this year. I love, love, love to hear "I had the best time!" all the way home. If it were just one of them, that would be one thing. It was all of them. After every class. The class times are late enough, too, that if we need to school a little longer on certain days, it is all good. We have the time. We are out quite a bit, but I'm going to see if we can move one of the classes. There is a jazz class right after the baby's tap class that I'm going to see if she can try. If she does well, that cuts another night out for us.

Our impromptu trip was because the baby told me the morning of her tap class that her shoes were too small. Off we go to buy tap shoes. The kids got the majority of their work done while I was in the shower. They also swapped laundry and folded towels and packed dance bags. If they can do that, I think it's going to be ok.

My only concern at this time is science co-op. It's not even co-op, it's the work load that goes with co-op. It takes us quite awhile to get through the lesson at home. The kids need to know the lesson before we get to co-op. Then it gets reviewed there and the labs are done. The next week, we finish the chapter and test. There is so much info in the books. And we have to do it all. Except last week because I was tired. I haven't been sleeping well. I skipped the last 2 or 3 pages. Guess what they talked about in co-op? That went well. Or not. I don't like the way the information is presented in the curriculum we're using. The man that wrote it likes the sound of his own voice. He uses "thus" and "nevertheless" in almost every paragraph, but not always the right way. I think someone has a confidence issue.

Piano is going well for the girls. I think the boy may start. I'm not sure. He hasn't shown any interest in getting back to guitar or playing or practicing. We thought maybe drums, but we're still not sure. That would mean acquiring a drum set for him to practice on. I told him to pick one, but he hasn't made a decision yet. We'll see where he ends up.

I feel better about the extras working with school now that they've all started. We are taking next week off. My dad and step mom are coming to visit! Yea!! They'll only be here for a few days, but we are so excited. It has been about 4 years since we've seen them. Then we go back at it. Tomorrow is Rock the Universe! Group 1 Crew and TobyMac are going to be so happy to see me. I mean, I'll be so happy to see them. Long day, very early morning and sleeping til noon. I'm taking a breath. And out...aaaahhhhhh.

Have a nice day.
          

And, Big Sigh...

I am starting to feel just a tad overwhelmed. I usually stay pretty busy. When we have a day where we can sit around in pajamas, we relish it.We are about to go into overdrive, but I'm not sure I'm gonna survive.

Our curriculum choice this year was based on the fact that I got most of it for free. It's good stuff, don't get me wrong. Free is not a reason to use it if it doesn't work for my kids. What's the point, really? The issue is that it is A LOT of work. There are some days we are still working at 3 in the afternoon. What kind of junk is that? Granted, the days we did that we got started just a little later than normal, but this is not the point. Even on days we do start on time, we are still schooling into the afternoon. Now we throw dance and girls club in the mix. Oh, yeah, and book club for the kids. Good thing that's once a month. And Latin. I'm ordering that this week. What have I gotten myself into?

A big giant ball of stress, that's what I've gotten into, dang it. There is so much we have to do that isn't together. What we do have together is taking some time. I have cut back as far as I can. There are some things that just can't be cut down anymore if we're expected to actually work. I mean, I could always just sit around all day and not do anything. Yeah, that's gonna happen.

Added to that is a strict "no going out to eat" until November. Hubby and I are putting ourselves on a pretty tight budget for the next couple of months. We want to see where the money is going and how it's getting there. That means menu planning and lots of cooking. Good thing the kids need to learn how to cook. There will be a couple of nights a week that the kids and/or hubby are going to make dinner. There is just no way around it. I do have a stack of recipes that they picked out. I added the Better Homes and Gardens Recipe app to my phone. Hopefully I can get some good ideas from that. I also sat and pulled a bunch of recipes from magazines today. I needed to get rid of the magazines, but I wanted the info in it. I pulled some pretty good vegetarian recipes and some I can make vegetarian. I like those. I do have a menu for the rest of this week. Please let it work.  

My dad is coming to visit! Yea!! I'm not sure if my step mom is coming or not, but it'll be good to see her, too. That will be the only exception to our "no going out to eat" rule. Dad wants sushi. Who am I to disappoint? I have some meals planned for next week, but we'll see how it goes. This will be our last hurrah for a little while.

I need to research and gather info on a couple of field trips. I got a request for the chocolate factory again. I am so in to that, let me tell you what. And then the beach? I say, yes, and thank you. When are those supposed to happen? I told the kids I would try to schedule a day every few weeks so we can go to Disney. Doesn't that sound lovely? Why, yes it does. I'm not sure when those days will be. I think they call them Saturdays.  

This, too, shall pass. I feel a little overwhelmed because we haven't started extras. I'll have a better idea of what kind of time we have. I think that's why we haven't found a groove yet. We don't have everything we need to groove. That starts this week. So ready for dance! I'll have a better picture of our schedule when that happens.

Right now, I'm gonna take it day by day and not put so much added stress on everyone. It's that whole trickle down thing. We have one week to get through, vacation after that, then a settling in period. Oh, to settle. Taking a breath, and big sigh.

Have a great day.
 
 

Plugging Away

We have been steady at it for about 3 weeks now. We've made some additions, and some subtractions, and really we're just trying to find a groove. My dad is coming to visit in about 2 weeks, and there will be no school that week. Here's what we've got going so far.

• The baby says she's bored. OK. I can fix that. Really, poor thing doesn't have that much to do. I have a few more workbooks she could do, but I don't want her to just do busy work. At the park the other day, one of the moms had some Rod and Staff language arts. So I got it. Rod and Staff is a curriculum I have wanted to use with my kids for awhile. The only place you can get it is the Rod and Staff website. Which I forget about when it's time to order. Anyway, it's grammar. Ooooo, the most dreaded of the dreaded subjects. I like the thoroughness of the curriculum. It has a lot of extras that come with it that we may or may not need. I always read the teacher's manuals (I'm weird that way) and it said that 120 minutes should be set aside for this. I'm not gonna, but the baby won't be bored anymore. 
• The boy is having motivation issues when it comes to his guitar. I think because he doesn't have anyone to just sit and play guitar with. He hasn't picked it up in over a week. Probably closer to two or three. It breaks my heart. He enjoyed the lessons so much. My dad is supposed to be bringing his ukelele with him. I'm hoping it helps the boy. Then we can get back to it. I'm thinking about putting him in piano with his sisters. Or maybe drums. I just don't know.
• The science we are doing for co-op is very time consuming. We work on it for about an hour, then we go to co-op the next day. But between the exercises and the reading, good grief. We could spend an hour and a half on it and probably still not get everything done. We go over half of the chapter one week and some experiments, then we finish the chapter and test the next week. I'm starting to think we may have to test at home. Then there's the chapter review. I use it as a test prep. If we have time. It is wearing me out. 
• We got all the shoes we need for dance. I finally found a white shirt for the boy. Just a plain white shirt. You could not imagine how hard that has been. The big girl has her leotard and tights. The baby has been set for awhile. She couldn't find her jazz shoes. One day she had them. The next day they were gone. Crazy girl. I found them under my desk. I have no idea and neither does she. The best we can figure is that she was wearing them while she was playing on the computer.
• We desperately need a new computer. This one is old, loud, and we can't always access all the websites we need to access. It gets very frustrating. At least we can use it for history. It's better than nothing. 
• I made stuffed shells for dinner. They were lovely. Everyone agreed they should go in the keeper pile. I'll post the recipe later. I looked through the stack and realized I have a lot of cooking to do. I made veggie stock. I'm going to make turkey stock in a few days. I also need to make cream of broccoli soup and maybe cream of chicken. I need them for two casserole type dishes the kids picked. Then there's the sweet potato crescent rolls. Oh my giddy aunt, they look amazing! I cooked a chicken today and deboned it so I have chicken and stock ready for soup and dinner. And I got a butternut squash at co-op. I am the only one that likes it, and I don't always. I do like butternut squash soup. We are going to have a couple of dreary days and soup is good on dreary days. I might make the rolls with the squash soup. Can you imagine? I think I'm drooling.     

I think that's good for the run down. I need to go put my stock away now that's it's cooled some. I think I may flip through my Better Homes and Gardens. I almost feel my kitchen mojo coming back.

Have a great day.        

Daybook

I have about 8 minutes until I get the kids up and we get ready for school. I like my quiet time in the morning. I can sit with my coffee and computer(or phone more often then not these days) and just browse through some sites I like or play Angry Birds or any of my Friends games. Then they wake up and it is pedal to the floor all day it seems. Here we go, 'cause we are wasting time.

• Outside my window: it is sunny and starting to get hot. Who knew at 745 in the morning it could be so muggy? You would think I was back home in Texas. Oh, now that is a lovely dream.One day, my dream will come true. I hope we have time for a swim this afternoon before it rains. We like the rain. The garden gets watered and the pool gets full. Mercy, the humidity, though. 
• I am reading: I have a couple of books that the big girl checked out and one for me. She started one and said it was boring. It looked pretty interesting to me, so she handed it over. The other one is by an author she really likes, but she didn't realize it was an adult book. There's nothing bad in it so far, but she wanted me to read it first. Can do. We just finished our after dinner book, which was The Secret Under Platform 13 by Eva Ibbotson. There were a couple of things that were a little weird in the book and I thought for sure we were gonna have questions, but no. I don't know whether to be OK about that or terrified. There was a part where a young man sat with his grandmother as she died. That was kinda hard to get through. Now we need a new book. I'm not sure what that will be, but we'll figure it out. And, of course, we're still listening to The Hobbit. It's not my favorite book, but it's better than I thought it would be.
• From the garden: Hubby and I cleaned some things out of the tower. We lost some strawberry plants to the heat, but it leaves room for other things. Right now we want to put in kale and Brussel sprouts. Our purple cabbage has not done much and they are getting pulled this weekend. There are three and they're tiny, so we'll use them all at once. Our sweet potatoes are flourishing as are our bell peppers. I wish the peppers would get bigger and come in at the same time. They are loving the rain, so hopefully. We pulled the rest of the tomato plants, but hubby rooted them and stuck them back in the ground. The bottom half of the plants were bare and ugly, but the tops were green and growing. We cut out the middle man and hopefully we'll get Romas and lemon boys and mortgage lifters out of it. We also planted beets, red okra, green okra, chard, and bok choi. So excited for our fall/winter crop. 
• From the schoolroom: We started school yesterday! So happy to have that going again. The baby has already asked for more work. Can we get through the first week, please? Really, though, her language arts is lacking, so I may change it. Or add to it, I haven't decided which. I have a couple of weeks before I order Latin, so I have some time to decide. Day 1 went well. There was some basic orientation to do. For us, that means looking at the new curriculum, discussing how the assignments are laid out, going over our schedule, that sort of thing. This year is the big girl's first year of high school so that means keeping grades. And I got our dance schedule finally! It is quite hefty this year, but that's fine, too. I've added dates for science co-op, girls club, and dance to my phone. Now to get it all on the big calendar. 
• Around the house: Operation clean rooms is mostly complete. Everybody has a little more that needs to get done, but the baby got her room vacuumed and the boy got his swept. So really, that means they do have a floor and I'm happy about that. We need to get the big girl some shelves so we can move her desk out. Now to get the pile in the kitchen to the thrift store. We could stock their shelves for years to come. 
• From the kitchen: I'm bored!! What kind of junk is that? My goal is to go through my gray box of yummy, aka my recipe box, and a bag of recipes I've torn out of Better Homes and Gardens magazines and pull 10 recipes I haven't made before. Hubby has to do the same thing. That will give us 20 new meals. We have got to find something in all that that is a winner. I'm hoping it will help me get creative in the kitchen again. Our schedule isn't nearly as wonky as it has been in the past, but there are still a couple of late-ish nights, so I'm hitting my crock pot blogs, too. There was a lemon chicken recipe I wanted to try. You know I'll post the recipe if it's a winner. 

I have gone over my allotted 15 minutes by about 10. The kids are up and I need to get moving. I have a bowl of oatmeal with honey and butter calling my name. And I'm hungry this morning.

Have a great day. 

The Run Down

On several of my friends' blogs, they are listing what they are using for the upcoming school year. In all my ramblings about planning and extras and co-ops and time, I'm not sure that I've done that. If I have, you get to see it again!

• Bible: God, What's Your Name? This is a Kay Arthur study that lets the kids find out what the different names for God are and what they mean. I love this idea and have wanted to do this as a bible study for a couple of years now. It's the only subject this year that we will do all together. I'm a little sad about that.
• Science: Apologia's Exploring Creation with Physical Science. This is what the big girl and the boy will be using for co-op. There will also be experiments with every module. Yea for experiments! I'm actually excited for that part. Their notebooks are set up and ready to go. God's Design for Life: Animal Life is what the elementary kids will be using. I'm actually looking forward to that as well. It was the science we did 3 years ago and the kids really enjoyed it. We will supplement that with The Complete Book of Animals and a lap book.
• History and Geography: The big girl will be using World Geography with Political and Cultural Profiles by A Beka. I was given this curriculum and I used to despise A Beka. It was dry and uninteresting. I really like this one. It's not dry and it has more information than one can possibly learn in one short school year. It will definitely be a challenge for the big girl to get everything done. Good thing she doesn't have to. The boy and the baby will be using Story of the World, Volume 3. The boy is specially excited. This has been his favorite history curriculum and he is glad to be getting back to it. This may be the last year we use this curriculum. Or I may start all over with the baby since she was 3 when we started. That's weird to think about. 
• Math: The big girl will be using A Beka Algebra. We were disappointed with her algebra curriculum last year and finally went back to pre-algebra for her. Her original pre-algebra just did not prepare her well enough for algebra. I hated to do it, but sometimes you have to. The boy will be using Bob Jones Math 6. It's just a straight forward sixth grade math. It has some colorful pages, but we're moving away from "I must be entertained by my curriculum". No, you need to learn. Might as well start now. The baby will be using LIFE Pacs. They worked well for the boy and I think they'll work well for the baby. I just couldn't find anything else that I thought would work for her. 
• Language Arts: The big girl will be using Themes in Literature by A Beka. She started this at the end of last year. It gave her an idea of how it would work for this year. There will be a lot of reading, that's for sure. I get to read with her so I know what the heck I'm teaching. The boy will be using book studies this year from Total Language Plus (The Whipping Boy) and Progeny Press (Mr. Popper's Penguins and Carry On, Mr. Bowditch). This is the first time we've used TLP, so we'll see how it goes. It seems very thorough. I have used PP before with the big girl and she enjoyed them. It didn't over power the story with lots of activities just to have activities. He may or may not finish all three. That's ok, too. I'm hoping he gets at least 2 of them done. The baby girl will be using Spelling and Poetry 3 by A Beka. At least for now. I would like more spelling, but there are only 5 lessons for each group of words, and most, if not all, look like they can be completed in the first day. It doesn't use all the words. Or if it does, it only uses each one once. I may switch her to Wordly Wise, but I really want to see how this works with our schedule. And, of course, I have tons of grammar and reading comprehension workbooks. We'll see what happens. 
• Latin: We will be using Memoria Press's First Form Latin Series. There are four books in this series and we could use them all. We'll see how the first year goes, but we're pretty excited about it. 

That's the rundown of our curriculum for the year. There's so much in my lesson plan book. I've scheduled the first two weeks and we start next Monday. The baby asked why we start in August since it was part of summer. I told her because we take off May, June, and July. We may start before schools and a lot of our friends start, but we get done sooner, too. Here's to a great school year. I hope yours is amazing!

Have a great day.         

Daybook Style

I like the daybook when I have a lot I want to say, but don't quite know how to say it yet. At this point, I'm just glad to have a computer to use. I'll grumble about it on the other blog shortly.

• Around the House: We are trying to get to those things finished that didn't get done during school or at the beginning of our crazy summer. The kids' rooms are coming along. The baby needs help, but have you seen her room? I'm cleaning up and cleaning out piles. I have books for the kids library at church I need to drop off, clothes to the thrift store, and things I had promised to give to friends that are just sitting in the corner of the kitchen. But at least they're organized. The yard is finally taking shape as is the garden. One thing at a time.
• Outside My Window: The sun is trying to peak out. It's been a rainy summer (duh!) and we appreciate every drop. Specially the drops that filled our pool. We didn't do much of that, but God has worked overtime on it. It's nice and full now. It will be oppressively hot for a few hours then rain, glorious rain. 
• I Am Reading: Nothing right now. I did just finish the 50 Shades trilogy. It is not what you think it is. I've got a blog planned for that as well. My next book will be Heaven Is for Real. I've been wanting to read that one for awhile, and borrowed it from a friend. Maybe when I'm done working this afternoon, I'll have a few minutes to get started. And, as usual, my request list is full at the library, I just don't have any books ready to pick up yet.  
• From the Schoolroom: School starts for us in 2 weeks. Lots of work to get done this year, but I think I've got a groove planned. Can you plan a groove? Anyway, we had to borrow a computer from my FIL, since our laptop decided to go to sleep. Like permanently. It's not what I had, but we can use it for school, so there ya' go. I cannot believe this will be our 5th year homeschooling. Where did the time go?
• From the Kitchen: There is not much happening there. Between Art and Music Camp, VBS, and all our other summer activities, I haven't made a "real" trip to the grocery store or planned a menu in weeks. I do have a list and even printed my coupons. I did manage to make a really good stuffed zucchini using lentils and brown rice instead of ground beef and white rice. It was lovely. We've been eating more vegetarian meals and no one has complained. I like it when that happens. Now to start adding more raw meals. Slowly, but surely.
• I Am Thankful: For my HUBBY!!!!! He has stood beside me in good times and not so good times. He has lifted me up and treated me like a queen. As my mom's health was steadily declining, he comforted me and held me and prayed with and for me and for Mom. God hand picked this wonderful man for me and I am ever so grateful for God's discerning wisdom. 
• From the Farm: You should see our chickens! They are so big! We get between 9-10 eggs a day. I am selling eggs as quickly as they lay them it seems some days. Talk about fresh eggs. We are going to add a run to the coop, but it will probably be the fall before we get to it. The tower has been cleaned out of old plants and is ready for some new stuff. We didn't take everything out, just what was done growing. We are going to start a few things to replace it with. Hubby wants a whole square foot bed full of brussel sprouts. I love that man. He said he never liked them until I cooked them. See what I mean? The man is amazing. We are putting up a portion of privacy fence by the garden, hopefully next weekend. The garden beds have been cleaned out as well. We had to pull several plants that died while we were in Texas and either haven't come back or only partially. It's ok, they'll make great compost. We did move the sweet potatoes container and ended up pulling 5 lbs of sweet potatoes! So happy about that!
• I Am Researching: Alkaline water. I very much believe that diet and nutrition has as much, if not more, to do with your health than any other thing, including exercise. While I believe that exercising is an important component, I also believe that the food you put in your mouth trumps even that. I am looking at both sides before I decide if that's a route we want to take or not. I know that keeping your body as alkaline as possible will help prevent and discourage sickness and ailments. I even have a list of alkaline foods. I'm basing a series of meals on them and we'll see how easy it is. Lots of veggies, that's for sure. Good thing veggie co-op is this week. 

That's what I've got for now. I think that's more than plenty for now. I've been inspired by my friend and fellow blogger to do some rearranging of my closet and clothes to create new looks. Thanks, ALT. I needed another project. At least my closet will get cleaned out. Wait, I thought that's what the blog was for. Oh, different kind of closet.

Have a great day.